The University of Louisville Alumni Association has hosted the Run for the “L” of it 5k for several years. The small turnout of less than 300-400 runners was making it difficult to continue without additional support. In 2014, JAM! Active, a Louisville based race management company took the reigns in partnerships with ULAA and promoted, revamped, and ran an “L” of a race.
The starting line was at ACC member UofL’s Football Stadium, Papa Johns Cardinal Stadium (the only school owed stadium with ALL bucket seating) and continued through the campus. The sights to be seen included the brand new state of the art Soccer Complex, Lacrosse, Field Hockey, Track and Field, and Softball Stadium. Once through the sports complex, the race entered the campus and weaved in and out of buildings that brought back memories of my college days at UofL. (My wife and I went there a the same time but would not meet until after our days at UofL were over). After reminiscing our college days we exited the campus and continued towards the finish line, which was in the outfield of UofL’s baseball stadium.
The event was awesome. Double the turn out of last year with room to grow. Support was awesome, UofL Police did a great job at closing roadways, blocking other traffic, and supporting the runners. The swag wasn’t too bad either with a nice tech shirt being included (ran a little big) along with some UofL info and a shameless plug from JAM
Active’s other events.

The Kentucky Derby Festival started with the miniMarathon over 30 years ago as an additional event to the Kentucky Derby Festival, a festival of events in the weeks leading up to the infamous Kentucky Derby. This race also hosts a full Marathon as of ten years ago that is now a BQ race, caution though, the full marathon is not a walk in the park.

Jordan Ball (Cousin), me, and Kenny Ball (father)

This was my first Kentucky Derby Festival miniMarathon and by far the largest event in terms of name and number of participants. The amount of parking within a mile of the starting line is amazing and allowed for a quick park and plenty of time to walk to the starting line. Near the corrals there were more than ample restroom facilities near each corral entrance. Corrals went from A – I and were clearly marked. For those more elite athletes in corrals A, B, and C, security was checking corral assignments to ensure the area was saved for those properly assigned.

2014 KDF miniMarathon Tech Shirts

Even with all of the racers present, my time from the rear of corral D to the start line was less than 8 minutes and the course cleared out rather easy. The course starts on Main Street in front of the old Belknap Hardware Building that Humana Insurance now occupies and continues down Main Street into West Louisville. Along the first leg, you pass the KFC Yum! Center, Muhammad Ali Center, Louisville Slugger Museum, and countless historical buildings of Louisville. Throughout the run, different parts of Louisville are seen, including Central Park, the University of Louisville, and entering the legendary host of the Kentucky Derby, Churchill Downs. Once you enter the gates of Churchill Downs, the sheer aura of the historical race track helps generate a second wind. Runners see thoroughbreds in action on the track as they run through tunnels under the track. A lap around the infamous infield (where the party is at on Derby day) and then out onto Central Ave for a split, Marathoneers to the right, halfers to the left. The half marathoners return towards downtown Louisville via 3rd Street and then turn right onto Main Street. The finish line is located next to Louisville Slugger Field, home to the Cincinnati Reds Triple A affiliate the Louisville Bats.

The swag for this event is rather nice. The tech shirts are quality shirt and vary year to year on color and design. The medals are very nice, unique to the race (Marathon runners get a similar, but different medal). Overall, this was a great event and a solid course with years of experience managing the race. The marathon is a BQ event and will test your abilities midway through the run.

2014 KDF miniMarathon Finisher’s Medal

Along the half route there were eight (8) water stops, six (6) Powerade stops, and three (3) Norton’s Healthcare first aid stops. The Runners Unite area included portapots, food, drinks, and a Asics Runner Gear area to buy Asics gear with the KDF logo. Oh and they offer medal engraving!Read my review here.

The 2014 Louisville Triple Crown of Running’s Anthem 5K was an interesting event. This was my first attempt at a LTCOR event but was not impressed about the experience. First, let me preface the remaining of this post with, due to major road construction in Downtown Louisville (The Ohio River Bridges Project), the location and course for this event had to be changed. The location was in the business park that hosts Anthem’s Louisville headquarters. The area was nice, in a nicer part of town, but it was not designed for that many people. There was over an hour wait from the beginning of the off ramp to the nearest parking lot less than 1 mile in total distance (even I run faster than that), then the parking was inadequate. The race was postponed for 40 minutes and people were still walking to the starting line when I was nearing the one mile mark.

The course was tough to navigate due to the limitation of two lanes for runners. 6,000 runners on a two lane road means there is absolutely no where for anyone to go. They did their best for what they had to deal with in my opinion. However, the drive out was worse than the one in. No traffic control, just a free for all that resulted in almost two hours in traffic.

Happy New Year! It’s 2014 and I cannot believe how fast 2013 went. I am proud of 2013 and sad to see it go but I am also looking forward to the opportunities and goals that 2014 will present. My first triathlon is less than a month away along with the packed winter and spring of the Shelbyville Triathlon Series, Louisville Triple Crown of Running, Kentucky Derby Festival miniMarathon, and the Derby Festivals’s Inaugural Tour de Lou, a 35 mile bike ride through the home city of the world famous Kentucky Derby.

2013 brought more miles my way than any other in my life, but that was cut drastically short after a debilitating knee injury in November that reduced my mileage to near zero from Nov 10 through the end of the year. The worst part was the lost opportunity to be coached by Scott Fishman due to the injury, one that has me bummed still to this day.

So 2014 has a lot of big plans and goals, first Tri, first race series, my 3rd half marathon and the plan for my first half Ironman in Muncie, IN in June. Here’s to 2014 and the memories she will bring. I hope everyone exceeds their goals and makes the best of 2014. I look forward to reading and interacting with each of you this year.

Well, I went for a quick run this am, and by quick, I mean a half mile. I haven’t ran since the LSC Half Marathon on November 10 due to pain in my right knee. It felt ok but not great, but moving forward. We’ll see what the rest of the day holds in terms of the knee.

Well, I don’t want to jinx it but I’m two days pain free in my knee. I bought a patella tendon brace and wore it for 3 days. The difference it made is remarkable. It cost $19.99 at Dick’s Sporting Goods and was well worth the $20 invested.

It has been 17 days since my knee was pain free. There were days that any weight on my right leg was unbearable and felt like my leg was going to go out at anytime. Now the question is , how do I entering training into the mix so not to aggravate it all over again?

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